Thursday, 21 December 2017

Finance deputy Minister Terrence Mukupe has said some
individuals who externalised money made frantic efforts to curry favour with
the ruling Zanu PF by offering to donate to the party’s special congress held
last week.

President Emmerson Mnangagwa last month issued a
three-month moratorium for those who externalised funds and assets to bring
them back into the country or face prosecution, creating panic among those on
the list.

“People who externalised money are known, as the President
has said before. Some people were making phone calls to try and donate things
to the party. But we said we are sufficient,” Mukupe said at an Opportunities
For Investment meeting yesterday.

Early this month an adviser to government on the Ease of
Doing Business, Ashok Chakravarti told a Special Policy Dialogue Forum that $5
billion could have been siphoned out of the country since dollarisation in
2009.

Government, Mukupe said has an overdraft of about $1,5
billion, which has implications on business and the economy at large.

He said the issuance of Treasury Bills was unsustainable,
adding that government was making corrective efforts to restore confidence in
the market.

“If we fix the confidence issue there will be more and more
money coming into banks,” Mukupe said.

The Finance deputy minister added after noticing a gap in
the enactment of policies and projects, the new administration has put in
motion a 100 days cyclical performance assessment, in a bid to push for
implementation of various economic projects.

“There is going to be a real time assessment of performance
to say what we have achieved after every 100 days. This means there will a
situation whereby after about every 100 days there will be assessment,” he
said.

Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce president, Divine
Ndhlukula said businesses owed money by government and yet at the same time
owing Zimbabwe Revenue Authority were advocating for set offs. Newsday